If you follow the news, you are familiar with Goldman Sachs’ current spotlight in the hot seat.  And you may know that the Securities and Exchange Commission used a Goldman Sachs’ employee’s e-mail to draft its historic complaint against the company for fraud, which also brought Congressional hearings in which Goldman Sachs’ executives have to testify, as well as intense media scrutiny.  Local employers should use this financial giant as a cautionary tale.
If you are a Humboldt County employer whose employees communicate by e-mail, it is critical that you have an appropriate use policy in place.  Despite the rapid-response nature of e-mail & online posts, employees should think twice—and then again—about whether their e-mail comports with company policy.  And, employers must be vigilant about making the policy known to employees, reiterating the policy and enforcing the policy.
If it seems like an issue too small or too unwieldy to deal with, imagine yourself in trial, with your employees’ e-mails projected onto a screen for a judge and a jury to read.
Posted in Amelia Burroughs, Employment Law | No Comments »
Tags: Amelia F. Burroughs, Employment Law